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Murlocs
Some of the lore in this article is from the ''Warcraft RPG which, while used as a source of lore, is not officially canon -- as such, this lore may be subject to change.'' Murlocs are a race of amphibious and aquatic beings that are widespread on the world of Azeroth. They have large mouths filled with rows of razorsharp teeth. Their bodies are bulbous, and -- depending on the subrace -- a Murloc may closely resemble a fish or a frog. Murlocs can also be found in a variety of colors, though the most common variety of Murloc is generally green. Murlocs have been known to be raised into undeath. Unlike most beings, however, undead Murlocs retain their free will. It is unknown if this is due to a natural resistance or if the race broke free of the control of the Lich King as the Forsaken did. Culture ]]Much of Murloc culture remains mysterious, as most Murlocs shun the company of other races or are outright hostile to them and few Murlocs ever learn to speak anything other than the language of Nerglish, which they share with the makrura. The few who do speak other languages have been known to trade shells and seaweed in return for other raw materials. Murlocs live in a tribal culture, with many different tribes found across the continents of Azeroth. These tribes congregate in crude villages made of huts that are little more than mud and sticks. The villages have no center, no fire, and no walkways giving them a somewhat chaotic appearance. The most distinctive feature of these villages is often a simple basin found behind the hut of the shaman of the village. There are no fortifications to protect a village from intruders, though the huts are constructed on stilts to save them from the tides or flooding. The inside of these huts are often ornately decorated with carvings or tapestries made of seaweed. ]]Murlocs, while not renowned craftsmen, do have a peculiar reverence of art. They seldom work with metals and rare use or touch fire, but they are experts when it comes to carving stone, wood, coral, bone, or shell. These can manifest as lifelike statues of sea creatures, decorations in their huts, or even in the staffs wielded by their shamans. These artistic items, though valued, are never traded to outsiders although they may be awarded to an outsider for a particularly impressive trade or deed. Some believe that religion plays a central part in Murloc society. The religion Murlocs follow appears to be a polytheistic, animistic faith with elements of shaman involved. They worship water and the most powerful of the beings found within it, holding rituals to communicate with the sea. Due to the nature of their pantheon, the beings they worship change depending on what powerful creatures a tribe has encountered. A deity will often be worshipped until another creature slays the object of worship -- at which point, that more powerful creature would become the object of worship. Some Murlocs also hold a deep reverence for The Deep Mother and it is rumored that all Murlocs revere "the One in the Deeps", though it is not known what this entity might be. Some tribes are devout worshippers of Neptulon the Tidehuner. Murlocs employ cowardly but highly effective tactics in combat -- attacking as a pack and, when defeat draws near, fleeing towards the safety of the water. If pursued into the water, Murlocs swiftly prove their underwater prowess, crushing their foes. History Murloc history is mostly unknown to outsiders. Much of what has been determined consists of geneologies of nearly impronouncible names. Murlocs are an ancient race -- at least as old as the first naga. The Night Elves have long been aware of the existence of Murlocs, however they have only recently come to be a presence in the Eastern Kingdoms. This knowledge may be due to the origins of the race -- at some point, a race was created by a frog ancient who spawned the Gorlocs. Murlocs then evolved from that race, dwelling deep in the oceans of the world. The recent expansion of Murlocs, moving not only onto more and more coastal land but settling around inland bodies of water, is believed to be a concerted expansion effort. Murlocs inadvertantly led to the creation of the New Horde. Their attacks on the Darkspear Trolls led to Thrall and his Orcs intervening. This would forge a lasting alliance -- the first of the alliances that the Horde would be forged from. Subraces There are several races that have evolved from Murlocs or are subraces of the race. These include: *Mur'ghoul *Mur'gul *Deep Murlocs *Jinyu Notable Murlocs *"Captain" Cookie *Sir Finley Mrrgglton Official Description : "Murloc origins are shrouded in mystery. This is due not only to the fact that these creatures appeared on Azeroth's shores fairly recently (as far as world history goes, anyway) but also because murlocs shun mortals and rarely, if ever, speak anything but their own garbled language. : What's been known up until now about the fish-men is the following: they are not the most intelligent creatures. They congregate on shorelines in tribes and villages. They have been known, in certain instances to worship enigmatic sea-deities (sometimes including naga). And they seem to care little for the mortal races. : However, recent accounts by select individuals who managed to gather information — either by spying, torturing or surreptitiously gaining the murlocs' trust, have brought some interesting details to light… : First, murlocs may not be as dumb as everyone thinks they are. Several clues point to the fact that their steady infiltration of the world's land masses may be a coordinated effort. Whether or not this enterprise has been undertaken strictly of their own accord is not yet known. : Also, the murloc race may be far older than most believe. Several accounts and clues seem to substantiate this. In fact, it is now believed that murlocs (or, more appropriately, their ancestors) may even pre-date trolls. Of course these ancient murlocs lived in the oceans' depths and therefore were never known to the world's early land-dwelling races. : In the last few years, the vile naga have begun reemerging from their watery abodes, causing historians to speculate that their migration may have triggered the murlocs' slow encroachment onto land. Some also guessed that the murlocs might be working in concert with the sinister amphibians. : But perhaps the most startling revelation to come from recent intelligence-gathering efforts was this: the naga may not be the only nightmarish horrors lurking in the seemingly bottomless oceans of the world. : Several indicators from the murlocs themselves point to the possibility that the fish-men are but worshippers or underlings of perhaps several deep-sea monstrosities that currently lie sleeping, or at least waiting, in the murky fathoms — and even more disturbing, that the murlocs' emergence is an indication of their incipient awakening. : If that is the case, the mysterious and somewhat underestimated murlocs may be the world's first glimpse at something far more terrifying." (Description from the old World of Wacraft official website) Images 539px-Murlocandbaby.jpg|A Murloc and a Murloc baby 356px-Merloc.jpg Murloc.png|An older, more fishlike version of a Murloc Non-Canon Non-Canon Images murloc_by_viggex-d4sj4ru.jpg|Murloc by Viggex|link=http://viggex.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4sj4ru Real World Murlocs are a non-playable race in the lore of the Warcraft universe. They are also a level 6-7 monster found in World of Warcraft. They seem to be inspired by the Deep Ones of H.P. Lovecraft fame. External Links *Wowpedia *WoWWiki *Wowhead Murlocs Category:WoW Bestiary Category:Amphibian Anthropomorphs Category:Warcraft III Bestiary Category:Warcraft RPG Bestiary